Six years after American teenager Natalie Holloway went missing in Aruba, a second American female has turned up missing under mysterious circumstances.
According to published reports, a 50-year-old man with a history of domestic violence against women is being held in the disappearance of Robyn Gardner.
Gardner, 35, of Frederick, Maryland, went missing on August 2 from the Renaissance Aruba Resort & Casino in Oranjestad. Gary Giordano was detained on Friday, August 5, by Aruban police as he attempted to leave the island.
Giordano has a history of domestic violence against his ex-wife and an ex-girlfriend. His ex-wife, and at least one other woman, obtained restraining orders against Giordano, according to Gawker.com.
Reportedly, Gardner hooked up with Giordano after meeting him online last month. The pair traveled to Aruba on vacation, said Gardner’s boyfriend of 1½ years.
Richard Forester, told WJLA 7 News that he had a fight with Gardner shortly before she left for vacation on July 31.
“The last message I got from her was, ‘I love you, we’ll talk and sort things out when I get back,'” Mr Forester said, according to the Daily Mail.
He described Mr Giordano as a rival for Ms Gardner’s affections and said he does not believe Giordano’s story that Gardner vanished in strong undercurrents while snorkeling.
Aruban officials say the water is always calm in the area where Giordano said Gardner was snorkeling.
Giordano, who also has past arrests for thefts under $500, denied any involvement in Gardner’s disappearance.
18-year-old high school student Natalee Holloway went missing on the Aruban island during a class trip in 2005. Aruban native Joran van der Sloot is suspected in her death. He is currently in a Peruvian prison on charges of murdering another woman. Holloway’s body has never been found.
Source: DM
